Amazon Faces Unionization Push in Alabama, A Test in Labor Organizing Bid
December 16 2020 - 6:41PM
Dow Jones News
By Sebastian Herrera
Amazon.com Inc. workers at an Alabama warehouse received
approval to hold a unionization vote, the first such election since
2014 at the nation's second-largest employer, testing the potential
for additional labor organizing at the retailing giant.
The National Labor Relations Board Tuesday ruled that employees
at Amazon's Bessemer, Ala. warehouse can decide whether to create a
bargaining unit within the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store
Union, according to an NLRB official. The date of the election and
other terms have yet to be determined.
A majority of the workers would have to choose unionization for
the employees to gain representation. The Alabama warehouse has
about 1,500 full- and part-time employees, according to the union,
although Amazon has argued the total is higher.
Though many hurdles remain, labor experts say a successful
campaign by workers could inspire similar efforts at other Amazon
warehouses. The company has more than 800,000 U.S. employees,
second only to Walmart Inc. in the country, as well as more than
760 facilities in its fulfillment network, according to logistics
consultant MWPVL International.
Hourly Amazon workers have never previously formed or joined a
union in the U.S.
An Amazon spokeswoman did not immediately respond to requests
for comment. A spokeswoman for the retail and wholesale union, or
RWDSU, declined to comment.
Write to Sebastian Herrera at Sebastian.Herrera@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
December 16, 2020 18:26 ET (23:26 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2020 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
Walmart (NYSE:WMT)
Historical Stock Chart
From Jun 2024 to Jul 2024
Walmart (NYSE:WMT)
Historical Stock Chart
From Jul 2023 to Jul 2024